Bearclaw Valley I'm so full of love, I could barely eat

His jaw clenched for a moment, the memory of punishment settling like a weight in his chest. He wasn’t a man who enjoyed violence, but he was a man who knew necessity.

I ain't a good man, he voiced, his voice low and steady. But what I can do is protect. His amber eyes shifted to meet hers, steady and unflinching. The regina’s carryin'. Towhee Jr.'s knocked up. I've got—. A breath. @Nephele's got her girls. We can’t afford attention like that.

He stepped down from the stump, his movements deliberate, almost heavy. Options ain’t about cruelty. They’re about sendin’ a message. A fractured paw? She’ll remember that every step she takes. The sound of it? Anyone else nearby would’ve remembered it too.

He sighed, his gaze flickering to the horizon before returning to her. It’s a hard thing, cub. But someone’s gotta do it. There was no boast in his tone, just a grim acceptance. I did it because I had to. And for what it's worth: I'd do it again.